


Getting to know you

by sojukitty



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-08
Updated: 2012-03-08
Packaged: 2017-11-01 15:51:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/358593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sojukitty/pseuds/sojukitty
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After a hostile start and a near death experience Tony and Steve start to become close. This closeness will be put to the test by a new enemy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Getting to know you

“Genius, Billionaire, Playboy, Philanthropist.” Tony internally winces the moment those words come out of his mouth. His default setting when involved in a confrontation is: ass-hole, but he wants it to be different with this man.

This is Captain America. Tony had a poster of him pinned up on his bedroom wall for nearly all of his childhood and for most of his teenage year. It was the only thing his father willingly gave him, besides a complex. He wants to be better then he usually is when concerning social interaction. Show his hero that he is someone worth knowing.

Tony opens his mouth to apologise for his behaviour (which would cause Pepper to have a heart attack if she knew), but it snaps shut the moment he hears what the Captain says next.

“You're nothing like your father.” The words are hissed between a clenched jaw. Obvious to everyone in the room that it is not meant as a compliment.

Tony's eye narrow. He tries to stay calm, telling himself that the man before him couldn't possibly know that he just pressed the one button that pretty much shuts down all his rational thought, but he fails, because, well... he pushed the good damn button!

Tony glares at Captain America before responding. “All I can say to that, Cap, is thank fucking Christ for small miracles!”

Tony watches with satisfaction as the blue eyes he is glaring into widen in shock. He keeps the eye contact going for a moment longer before he turns on his heels and stomps towards the door. He ignores his 'team-mates', but makes sure to give Fury the most disrespectful salute he can muster before he exits the room. As far as he is concerned, these people can go fuck themselves. He is Tony fucking Stark and he has better things to do then suck up to a bunch kids playing dress-up.

Tony hates the Helicarrier. Sure, he made it and it is awesome, but it is impossible to exit from it dramatically. He either has to ask for a lift from one of the SHIELD agents (which is embarrassing and totally out of the question), or he has to get into his armor (which is time consuming),so he can fly himself home. He chooses the armor, but regrets that decision soon enough when Captain America is blocking his escape route with a determined, yet slightly apologetic expression.

“Mr Stark, I think we got off on the wrong foot and I want to apol---” Tony holds up an armor clad hand to cut him off. He drops his faceplate and uses his raised hand to shove the man in front of him out of the way. He moves past his 'leader' and takes the last few steps towards the edge of the platform. He glances back at a furious looking Captain America. flips him the bird and then jumps.

On the flight home he wonders if he may have overreacted, but then shrugs it off deciding that even if he did, it is too late to take it back now. Tony Stark doesn't do regret.

 

For a week Tony hides in his workshop, working on anything he can get his hands on (the armor, a new smart phone prototype, Dummy... the blender) and ignores all his calls. He knows it is only a matter of time before Pepper gets fed up with his game of hide and seek and tracks him down, so he is making the most of it.

He is halfway through pimpin' out his tablet when Pepper barges through the door and stomps over to him (as best you can on 4 inch heels).

“Sir, Miss Potts is here to see you.”

Tony rolls his eyes at JARVIS' rather redundant announcement. “Thanks, Jarvis for stating the fucking obvious. Your service is top notch as always.”

The AI's reply is almost immediate and dripping with sarcasm. “Thank you, Sir. I do try.”

Tony drops his tablet (which is now magenta with blue flames) and paint gun onto the bench and swivels in his chair so that he fully facing an obviously irate Pepper.

“Well, you aren't dead, so I guess I owe Rhodey $10, but you also don't look like you have slept this past week, so Happy owes me $20.” She says this very matter-a-factly, but Tony's knows it is only a matter of time before she explodes. He decides he might as well help her with that. He was never one to just wait for things to happen. He prefers to makes them happen, that way there's no surprise.

“Betting on if I am dead or alive. That isn't very nice. I thought you were better than that, Pep. Fore shame.”

This gets the reaction Tony was expecting. Pepper's whole face goes red in anger and her eyes narrow into a glare. Tony decides that now is probably not the best time to tell her that she is incredibly predictable.

“I have been worried sick, Tony! I called you 62 times... 62 TIMES! I rescheduled meetings and flew from LA to make sure you hadn't killed yourself.” Her face had gotten redder to correspond with the rise in her voice as she ranted.

“Everyone has been calling me, worried sick about you. Rhodey, Happy, even Fury. Oh, and don't get me started with Captain Rogers.”

This gets Tony's attention. “Rogers asked after me?”

To answer him Pepper hands over her phone which is currently displaying all her received calls. As she had stated, Nick, Rhodey and Happy's numbers are there, but they are practically overwhelmed by the Captain's cell number. Tony glances up at Pepper. “He must have called at least---”

Pepper finishes the statement for him. “41 times, and he sent me 32 text messages. Oh, and 10 emails, can't forget the emails. He was positive that you had gone off and done something stupid after your little argument.”

Tony scoffs at that. “Did you tell him that me doing something stupid is a normal occurrence around here and that when I'm acting responsible is the time he should be worried?”

Pepper sighs and manages to pull some paperwork out of thin air. She pokes at the small pile of paper and Tony takes the hint. He pull the stack closer, grabs a pen and start scribbling his names next to the 'sign me' stickers. Pepper answers him while he is occupied.

“I did inform him of this fact, but he was convinced you were in trouble and that it was his fault. I felt bad for the poor guy.” Pepper grabs the papers from he the moment he signs the last page and begins making her way towards the door.

“That's why I brought him with me on this little visit.” She throws over her shoulder before she exits the workshop. Tony has turned back around to his work bench and is trying to unjam the paint gun when what she has said finally registers. His head snaps up and he spins to the door with an expression of growing terror. Pepper has disappeared from view, which means that it is only a matter of minutes (maybe less) before she sends down Captain America. Tony does the only thing is good at in these type of situations... he panics. “Jarvis, turn off the lights and lock the door. If he thinks no-one is down here then hopefully he will leave.”

Before even waiting for a reply from the AI, Tony drops to the ground and rolls under the bench. As the seconds tick by, he notices that the lights are still on. His anxiety rises. He tries to keep his voice low when addresses his very close to being deleted computer system.“Psst, Jarvis! I gave you a direct order. Shut down the lights before the star spangled man gets down here.”

Tony winces when he hears the very deliberate knocking against the glass door of his workshop.

“I believe it is too late for that, Sir. It appears Captain Rogers is already here. Besides, Miss Potts would have already informed him that you were situated down here. I did not wish to lie to the good Captain.”

Tony grinds his teeth at JARVIS' mock whisper. He decides that when he has the time, he is going to modify some JARVIS' more annoying features, such as sarcasm and derision. A voice at the back of his mind that sounds a lot like his father is laughing and telling him that he should never have modelled it’s personality so closely after his own. He makes a note to get these voices checked out. They can’t be normal.

“How polite of you, Jarvis. Maybe you could turn some of those nice manners towards me once in a while. Hell, just following a few of my orders would be a nice change.” Tony hisses, as he drags himself out from his hiding place and plasters (what he believes to be) a welcoming smile. JARVIS takes his actions as permission for it to unlock the door and a moment later Captain America is walking determinedly towards Tony.

“Hello, Captain. I must say I am surprised to see you here. Were there no kittens needing rescuing from trees tonight?” Tony delivers this with a too wide smile, hoping it will compliment the false cheer. He is surprised when the man in front of him doesn’t take the bait. There doesn’t seem to be any anger in his expression at all, only concern... and maybe a little confusion. This in turn confuses Tony. A normal person would have heard his snarkiness and become defensive, even aggressive. Somehow, the Captain has surprised him again. He watches warily as Captain America steps up to him and leans against the work bench.

“I came because I was worried about you, Mr Stark. I have been trying to contact you for the last three days to apolo---”

Tony interrupts him before he can finish that sentence. “No need. Bridges and water and all that. Also, call me Tony. Mr Stark was my...” Tony trails off, realising that even in a round about way he can't seem to mention his father. “I prefer Tony.” It is barely a whisper, but the nod he gets in response tells him that he was heard.

“Only if you call me Steve. I'm not Captain America when the uniform is off.” Steve says this as he holds out his hand for a shake that Tony knows he should have let happen long before now. He hesitates for only a moment, trying to get his mind around the fact that he gets to address his childhood hero by his actual name before he reaches out with a slightly damp hand and take the one Steve is offering in a firm grip.

“Okay, Steve, now that we have that pesky name business sorted and you have seen that I'm not actually drowning in my own vomit, is there something else I can do for you?”

Steve releases Tony's hand and shrugs. “Not really, except you could confirm for me that you will come to the Avengers' meeting we are having at SHIELD tomorrow. You know, to show everyone that you are in-fact still alive. Thor has been telling people that I tracked you down and killed you for insulting my honor. I would like to put an end to the rumor once and for all.”

Tony smirks. “Are you sure you want to do that? I bet Thor respects you more for of it. Norse gods are all into that 'honor' shit, or so I have been told.”

Steve lifts a hand to rub at the back of his neck as he chuckles. His cheeks have colored slightly and Tony can't help but think that he is the most adorable thing he has ever seen, and he once saw a kitten sleeping with a puppy, while a baby petted them in a pet store.

“I would prefer to gain his respect without ending people's lives. I hear he's a fan of pudding. I could just buy him a load of that.”

Instead of laughing like he knows he should because what Steve said was kind of funny (in a completely adorable way), he stares at the man in growing horror when he realizes something he wasn't expecting.

Steve's face loses all it's humor and the concern is back. “Tony, are you okay?”

Tony tries to mess with the calculations in his head so that he can get a different answer, but it remains the same. He likes Steve. He likes him a lot. He can't let this happen. When he likes people they end up getting hurt.

Tony snaps back to reality when he spies Steve's hands reaching out for him. He flinches away and then his heart sinks a little as he watches the hand drop. He turns around and picks up anything within reach on his bench, trying to look busy.

“Ah, I don't want to be rude but I was working on something before you came in.” He says this as impersonally as he can, pulling on his years of experience his had talking like this to board members, bitchy socialites and nosey reporters. It works, just like he knew it would.

“Uh...um... sorry. I didn’t mean to keep you from your work. Like I said, I was worried. Get some rest and I'll see you tomorrow, right?” Steve asks the last part hopefully.

Tony doesn't risk turning to face him, so instead give a curt nod to the bench top and makes a humming noise that resembles agreement, praying that it will be enough. a small sigh of relief escapes his mouth when he hears the lighter than expected footsteps as Steve walks away form him and it takes every ounce of his will power to not turn around and, at best stare at him longingly as he leaves, or at worst beg him to stay. When he knows Steve has gone he thumps his head against the cold metal of his workbench.

“What am I going to do?” He asks desperately to the empty room. He doesn't really expect an response, and so he nearly jumps out of his skin when he feels something nudge his arm. He turns he head and sees that it is Dummy, who is holding something in his grip.

“What have you got there, boy?” Tony asks, his curiosity piqued.

Dummy lets go of the item and it lands on the bench right before Tony's face. It is a figurine of Captain America. The one Tony kept hidden in his old red tool box he used as a kid. The tool box he was sure no-one... or thing knew about. Tony half-heartedly glares at the first robot he ever created and has proved time and time again is not as stupid as he pretends to be. Just to verify this fact, Dummy gestures pointedly at the figurine, then at the door that Steve had just left through, and then finishes by poking, rather roughly, at Tony's arm. The robot is being pretty clear. He wants Tony to go after Steve. Tony decides to put a stop to that idea straight away.

“Oh, don't even start. No-one asked you for your input. Don't you have a fire extinguisher to douse me with, or something?”

Dummy shakes his 'head' in what Tony is sure amounts to exasperation and then wheels away.

Tony can't believe he has reached a stage in his life where a basic protocol robot is judging him.

“Do you need my help with the project you informed Captain Rogers of before he departed?” JARVIS inquires with a tone of dry amusement.

Tony answers him by picking up the Captain America collectable and throwing it at the AI terminal on the nearby wall. He curses when it misses. JARVIS seems to have enough self preservation not to comment on this.

After five minutes of silently fuming over the bits and pieces on the bench, Tony jumps to his feet and jogs over to where the Captain America figurine landed after hitting the wall and picks it up. He dusts it off and then glances over it looking for any sign of damage. Once he has assured himself that it hasn't been harmed, he shoves it in his back pocket and decides that it might just be time for some sleep after all. He pointedly ignores Dummy's knowing clicks and whirs, and gives JARVIS' wall unit the finger when it see him out by playing the instrumental version of 'Star-spangled man'.

 

Tony never makes it to that SHEILD meeting, but he doesn't feel too bad about it because none of the other Avengers do either. Doom bots rampaging through lower Manhattan is apparently enough of a reason to cancel one of Fury's bitching session. He has to admit that flying around, shooting at evil robots is a much more entertaining way to spend his time. By the grin on Steve's face as he tosses his shield at the metallic enemy, the man must agree with him. Tony tried to squash down the butterflies that have started forming in his stomach at the sight of Captain America's huge grin, and he is mostly successful. Maybe one or two butterflies had escaped his wrath, but they can be easily ignored.

Still, he couldn't seem to keep his gaze away from the man in red, white and blue. Maybe it was because of this that he started to notice the pattern that was forming between the bots and Steve. At first, Steve had managed to hit every single one of his targets, but as time wore on, more and more doom bots managed to dodge the shield. Now, he doesn’t seem to be hitting any of them, just herding them away from innocent civilians.

Tony blasts his repulsors at one of the bots that his sensors picked up sneaking up on Clint and then turns back to Steve, really looking at him now. There is something going on and he knows he just needs a couple of seconds to figure it out. Sure enough everything clicks into place. It is not a good place.

Steve throws his shield the exact same way every time and he always telegraphs the move. These are learning bots and they have obviously collected enough data on Cap to be able to dodge his attacks. Tony figures it's only a matter of time before the bots start using Steve's weakness against him. He opens up communications and addresses the whole team.

“These bots are learning droids. You all need to change up your methods of attack before they figure out a way to deflect it. Cap, they have figured out how you throw your shield and now know when you are about to do it. Try something else.”

There is a second of silence and then Steve's voice, which sounds exasperated, fills his helmet. “Thanks for the advice, but I think I know what I am doing, Iron Man. This isn't my first rodeo.”

To emphasise his point, Steve flings his shield at the bot that is heading towards him. The look of triumph, drains off Steve's face as he watches the bot catch his shield, obviously prepared for it (like Tony knew it would be). Tony has already figured out what is going to happen next and that is why he is speeding down towards Steve, muttering to himself to go faster. From the corner of his eye he spots the bot as it throws the shield faster then even Steve can throw it, and pushes his suit that little bit more. He shoves Steve away and to the ground. He then spins around and braces himself for impact. It comes and he flies backwards through, not one, but two brick walls. He slumps against the third wall he didn’t manage to break through and groans as the pain his body is in finally registers. “Jarvis, status report.”

Graphs and tables appear before his eyes, but he can't seem to focus on them no matter how much he tries, so he just waits until JARVIS explains the worst of it.

“The impact from Captain America's shield has severely compromised the integrity of the armor plates protecting your chest area. This has resulted in three broken ribs, one of which has punctured your left lung. I detect internal bleeding. I have called for medical assistance, which should be here momentarily.” JARVIS explains, without a trace of his usual sarcasm, which tells Tony that the AI is at least a little bit worried.

Tony goes to reassure him, but is distracted by the hurried footsteps and his name begin called by a very familiar voice. A moment later Steve's worried face fills his view and relief floods Tony's whole body. If Steve is in front of him then that means that the bots didn’t get him. Captain America is safe. It fills him with pride knowing that he was the one to ensure that this time.

Tony watches as Steve pulls back his cowl with trembling hands and then reaches out towards Tony's helmet. He fumbles over the smooth surface of the helmet, trying to find a release and then finally gives up. “Tony, open your helmet. Please open your helmet. I need to see your face.”

Tony gives the command and then the faceplate disappears over the top of his helmet. His eyes lock with Steve's suspiciously wet ones for a moment before he takes in the rest of the man's form.

“You seem okay, Cap. You are okay, right?” He asks in all seriousness.

Steve just stares at him for a few seconds and then throws his head back and laughs, hysterically. Tony doesn't quite understand what is so funny about his inquiry. He genuinely wants to know if Steve is hurt or not.

“God, Tony! You get hit by my shield and fly through two heavy duty walls, and you are asking me if I'm okay! You are something else.” Steve's voice cracks a few times near the end as though he was going to start crying. Tony reaches for a topic that might be able to lighten the mood a little.

“Yeah, I am pretty awesome and maybe next time you will remember that when I try to tell you something.” Something wet dribbles down his chin as he speaks, and unless he has adopted a drooling habit, he is pretty sure it is blood. Steve must see it too because his eyes go wide and his face has gone deathly pale. He turns from Tony and calls out for help. Tony can hear the panic saturating every syllable and feels incredibly guilty. He doesn’t want to be the cause of an upset Captain America. He wants to reach out to Steve to comfort him, but his arms aren’t co-operating. He thinks it might be the armor, but then his vision becomes blurry and his eyelids begin to droop. He knows from experience that he is seconds away from passing out, so he uses the last of his strength to call out to Steve. Steve turns to stares at Tony worriedly. “What is it, Tony? Tell me how I can help you?”

Tony give him one of patented grins in response. He licks his lips, ignoring the taste of his own blood and the growing darkness that is filling his sight. His voice is barely a whisper.

“It was totally worth it.”

Everything goes black.

 

When Tony is on drugs, especially the good ones, he dreams... a lot. Usually they are good dreams, like flying to the moon in his armor, or floating on a donut in a giant pot of coffee. But every so often a nightmare will sneak its way in. Sometimes it is him reliving his torture in Afghanistan and other times it's Howard coming back from the dead and telling Tony everything he fears is true. Useless, pathetic, a menace, a drunk... alone. It is the last one that scares him the most . For all his bravado, Tony doesn’t want to go through his life without someone by his side.

Tony whimpers as his father's voice tells him that that is exactly what he is going to do, but then he feels fingers brush through his hair and caress his scalp. He can hear soft murmurs of comfort, but cannot place the voice, nor make out the words. They are nice though, so he he just lets the soft murmurs wash through him. His father is gone and all that is left is warm fingers, pleasurable sounds of a voice the drugs won't let him identify, and the feel of his hand held in someone else's. He falls into a deeper with the knowledge that he is safe. Something he hasn't felt in a very long time.

 

Suddenly Tony is away and he bolts up in bed, looking around the room in a panic. He spots Rhodey, asleep in a chair over by the far wall, and he calms down. He is not alone. He sits there and stares at his friend for a few minutes before he comes to the realisation that what he is doing could be seen as creepy. People don't tend to like it when other people watch them sleep... unless they are in a vampire romance novel.

“Uh, Rhodey?” His voice is rough from lack of use.

Rhodey is startled awake and then just blinks at Tony. Once his brain has caught on, he is out of the chair and by Tony's side in a flash. He looks relieved, but he tries to hide it behind a heavy dose of exasperation.

“So I heard you picked a fight with a wall and the wall won. That must be a bruise to the ego.”

Tony scowls at his friend and wags his finger. “It was two walls, and that was after I got hit by Cap's shield, which hurt like a bitch by the way. I think I held up pretty well considering.”

Rhode just smiles and shakes his head. He takes a seat on the edge of Tony's bed and explains what has been happening while he has been out. All of the Doom bots were destroyed and the remains sent to the Helicarrier so that the science department can analyse them. Victor Von Doom managed to escape but the Fantastic Four are on his tail. This has Tony rolling his eyes because, though Reed means well, he tends to make things worse before he makes things better.

Tony asks Rhodey about the other Avengers, trying not to make it too obvious that he is really asking about Steve. Rhodey puts his mind at ease by telling him that he was the only one injured during the fight and that while he had been out of it for the past 20 hours, every single one of them had come to visit him. Tony can't help but smile at this piece of information, Rhodey's feature, however, crease in bemusement.

“Actually, Steve left about 10 minutes before you woke up. From what Pepper tells me, he has been here the whole time. What's that about? I didn't know you two were close.”

It takes all the willpower Tony has (and some he doesn't) to make his face take on a confused expression, instead of letting his grin grow wider. Something inside him warms at the knowledge that Steve was worried enough about him to keep a bedside visual. He shrugs his shoulders as an answer to Rhodey's question, not trusting himself to speak, lest he give something away. This seems to be enough for his friend and the topic is dropped, but for Tony, it is definitely not forgotten.

They spend another hour talking, but then Tony yawns and that is when Rhodey goes all worry-wart on him and tells him that he needs to sleep. As Rhodey goes to get off the bed, Tony grabs his wrist. Rhodey glances down at him expectantly.

“I know this is going to sound weird, but please take into account that I am on some pretty heavy duty painkillers. I just wanted to know if you might have, while I was sleeping, brushed your fingers through my hair, or maybe held my hand? You know, to comfort me or something?” Tony asks, uncertainty tainting his voice.

Rhodey doesn't laugh at him, or get defensive, or even seem confused. He just looks sad. Sad for Tony.

“No, I didn't... sorry. As you know, I'm not really the touchy-feely type. A one arm hug is usually all I'm good for, two if you have just come back from being held hostage by terrorists.”

Tony smiles at the the little joke, but then his face sobers. Now he has to figure out who it could have been, or maybe it wasn't anyone and, like he had first though, he had just dreamt it.

“Did you like it, Tony? The hair brushing and hand-holding, I mean.” Rhodey asks seriously, seeming truly curious.

Thinking about the caresses and the secure hold, which seemed to be his anchor at time. “Yeah, it was nice.”

 

Tony spends the next two days in hospital and then the following three in bed under doctor's (and Pepper's) orders. At first he thinks he will go mad not being able to leave his room, but with all the people visiting him, he finds his temporary prison sentence tolerable. Apparently while he was in hospital Fury moved the rest of the Avengers into his mansion. He knows he should be pissed about this, but he can't seem to tap into the anger that he needs.

Natasha comes and paints his nails in the early morning after she wakes him up. He allows it because she only uses different shades of red and gold (also it is better then her sticking a syringe in his neck).

Clint plays a couple of card games with during mid afternoon, usually just after lunch. It is fun, except for the one time they played snap and Clint was wearing every single ring he owned. That game is now banned.

Thor joins him for afternoon tea, which usually consists of instant coffee, strawberry pop-tarts, and pudding cups. Tony doesn’t have the heart to tell the big guy that all those things make him want to gag, so instead he tries to swallow everything without letting anything actually touch his tongue and plasters a huge smile on his face, as Thor discusses the wonders of Twitter.

Bruce usually drops by just before dinner. He only ever stays long enough to drop off some science articles he thinks Tony would like, and to inform him of what he has been getting up to in his own lab. Tony doesn't push it, knowing that Bruce is shy, but he makes a promise to himself to make more of an effort to reach out to Banner because he is a pretty decent guy (when he is not an angry green monster).

Pepper always comes in at around 11pm to give him reports to sign, discuss her day (and ask about his), and tuck him in (figuratively).Rhodes, who had to travel back to LA, usually calls when Pepper is there so they can both gang up on him for working on schematics or forgetting to take his meds.

Tony is surprised by the fact that so many people who know what he is like, are so willing to spend there free time with him, but what surprises him even more is that it is Steve who visits him the most. The super soldier brings Tony his breakfast every morning and hands over the business section, while he sits on the end of the bed and reads the arts section. He tells Tony his plans for the day, and once Tony has finished his meal, he stacks up the dishes and leaves, with the promise to be back at lunch time.

At noon, Steve returns with a couple of sandwiches, his sketch-book and car magazine for Tony. Just like breakfast, most of the time is spent in comfortable silence, sometimes broken by Tony pointing out a car he knows Steve would appreciate, or Steve asking Tony if the perspective in his drawing seems a little off. He leaves about 10 minutes before Clint shows up.

7pm is dinner time, and Steve steps in with both of their meals. While they are eating, they talk about their days (the parts they weren't together for) and usually have a laugh, because the people they are surrounded by are hilarious. After their dinner, Steve grabs the chess board off of Tony's desk and while they are distracted by the game, spill bits and pieces about themselves. Tony tells him about his schooling and how sometimes he thinks he would have had an easier time of it if he had kept his genius a secret. Steve reveals how frustrated it was for him to be told he couldn’t do things because of his size, and then how annoying it was to be listened to just because of his size. By silent, mutual agreement they never discuss Howard.

By the third evening of his captivity, Tony begins to suspect that he may be half in love with Steve Rogers, and the strange thing is that he is not freaked out by that at all.

 

Tony knows that something isn't right when he isn't woken up by Natasha on the fourth day after returning from the hospital, and is instead woken by the sound of his phone ringing at 11:30am. It turns out to be his doctor, who tells him he is off bed rest, but that he need to stick to light duties for another week. Once Tony hangs up, he slumps back onto the bed and stares up questioningly at the ceiling.

“Hey Jarvis, where is everyone? Why didn't Steve bring in my breakfast?” He instantly winces at the whine in his voice. Three days and he has become a teenage girl.

“Mr Fury called at 5am and requested that all of the Avengers report for duty. Captain Rogers left you a note on your left bedside table before he departed.” Jarvis informs him.

For a second, Tony tries for nonchalant, but he knows he isn’t fooling anyone (especially JARVIS, who was programmed after him) and quickly scrambles to the edge of the bed and snatches Steve's note for the polished wood.

_'Dear Tony,_

_We got called in for a mission so I won't be able to make you breakfast today, but I did make sure there was enough milk and cereal for you to make your own. I will hopefully be back to get your lunch._

_Yours,_

_Steve_

_P.S. Do not hurt yourself while we are gone. We just put you back together and I would hate to see all that hard work go to waste.'_

Tony traces the word 'yours' a few times with is finger, his heart warming with an emotion he doesn’t really want to put a name to at the moment, as his brain tries to decide what meaning he should read into that one word. He is pulled out of his reveries when JARVIS clears his electronic throat.

“Now that you are a free man, sir, is there anything you wish for me to do for you? I could prepare your workshop for you if you would like?”

Tony shakes his head as he climbs out of bed. “Nah, don't bother with that. I need to take a shower, get something to eat, and then report in to Pepper. The fun stuff will have to wait until later.”

He hears the customary (and always slightly exasperated) “of course, sir” as he heads into his bathroom and laughs. No matter how many times he threatens to remove JARVIS' personality protocols he knows he will never do it. Who would entertain him then.

Steve and the others don't make it home for lunch, so Tony makes himself some cereal, and a few pieces of toast. He makes his way into his office and gets himself comfortable, knowing that he is probably going to be spending some time in here once he gets a hold of Pepper.

He isn’t wrong. After she gives him a status report, she patches him through to a conference with some Japanese investors and that call ends up taking several hours. Afterwards, he calls Rhodey and bitches to him about responsibilities until his friend hangs up (which takes longer than usual and Tony thinks it is because he was injured). The next time he looks at his watch it is 6pm and wonders where the time has gone.

“Jarvis, are the others back yet?” He wanted to ask if Steve was back yet, but didn’t want to give his AI any more ammunition against him.

“Yes, sir. They arrived back 2 hours ago. Captain Rogers went searching for you in you room and when he discovered you were not there, became quite distressed.” Panic sets in and Tony races to the door, but halts when he hears what JARVIS says next.

“I quickly informed him that the doctor called and has allowed you to perform light duties and that you were in your office. I told the Captain that you would not mind being interrupted, but he was adamant about giving you some privacy to work. He instead asked if he could enter your workshop, which I allowed. He is still there. Do you wish me to---”

Tony doesn't even wait for JARVIS to finish his question before his is racing out of his office. His sock-clad feet skid across the polished floorboards as he reaches the top of the staircase. He takes the steps two at time, but slows when he gets to the glass door leading to his workshop.

Steve is sitting at one of the benches with his back to Tony. He looks like he might be drawing. That is not totally out the ordinary. He has seen Steve draw a million times when he spent time with him while he was trapped in bed. What is surprising is that Dummy is next to him, and he seems to be drawing as well. He notices that Steve has turned to address the robot, so Tony turns on the intercom to listen in, curiosity completely overtaking him.

“Wow, you are really good at that, Dummy. Are you sure that Tony didn't program you with any art protocols?”

Dummy lifts his head/hand (which is clutching a red pencil) and nods. Steve smiles and pats it on the head as it bends back down to it's paper. Steve then leans over to admire Dummy's work again.

“Is that Tony in his suit?” Dummy chirp in affirmation and Tony's lips curve up into a lopsided smile. Dummy is like a child, a pain in the ass most of the time, but every so often he does something that just makes Tony want to melt into a puddle of goo. He is jolted from his thoughts when Steve speaks again.

“I know you have been worried about him and miss him. He was hurt, but he is getting better. I have been making sure he has been eating and that he has been getting enough rest. I owe him that much.”

Tony raises an eyebrow in confusion at this confession. Dummy is obviously equally confused with what Steve says, because it tilts it's (now yellow) pencil clad head/hand in a way that makes it's puzzlement clear to even the stupidest of men. Steve is a very intelligent man and begins to explain.

“He got hit by _my_ shield protecting me, after he _warned_ me that it would eventually be used against me. If I had just listened he would not have been hurt.”

Steve shoulders sag and Tony is just about to burst through the door and hug the living crap out of Steve, but Dummy beats him to it. It doesn't hug him (it only has one arm that bends up and down, so hugging is sort of impossible), but it does drop the pencil and gently pats Steve on the head and makes soft humming noises of comfort. Steve lifts his head and gives Dummy a small smile of thanks.

“I guess one good thing came of all this. I go to spend time with Tony and discover for myself how great he is. That has to count for something, right?” Dummy nods.

Steve's smile widens a little and then he glances down at Dummy's paper for a third time.

“Hey, if you are finished, do you think I could keep this picture of Tony?” Dummy nods again.

Tony decides to that it is time to make his presence known before he starts squealing and flailing like the fangirls that sometimes wait outside of Stark Tower. He turns off the intercom and goes up a few steps before making his way down again. He knocks on the glass and tries to keep a neutral expression as Steve bolts out of his seat and Dummy spins so hard that it makes a full rotation before finally coming to a stop facing Tony.

JARVIS unlocks the door for Tony and he walking into his workshop towards Steve, who is hastily folding the paper in his hand (which Tony guesses is the picture of him) and shoving it into his jacket pocket.

“So, what has been going on here? Anything I should know about?” Tony's gaze bounces between Steve and Dummy as he asks those questions.

Both Dummy and Steve shake their heads almost guiltily. Tony would call them on it, but he is feeling a little guilty himself. His mother had never failed to remind him that ears dropping is extremely rude and her voice in his head is doing it right now.

“Okay. That's good to know. The last thing I need is you two ganging up on me. I have enough trouble keeping Dummy in-line.”

Steve throws his head back and laughs before gripping Tony's upper-arm, almost as if he needs it to keep him steady. Tony doesn't mind.

“Dummy has just been keeping me company while I waited for you to finish up in the office. Nothing sinister going on here, right, Dummy?” Dummy, yet again nods and adds a chirp for good measure.

Tony tries to ignore the fact that Steve's hand is still on his arm, the heat from it seemingly burning through his shirt, and instead focuses on turning thoughts into words. He manages to succeed... barely.

“How about JARVIS order us some pizza and we can hang out down here with Dummy, while you tell me all about the mission I missed out on today?”

Steve finally drops his hand but he keeps his gaze set on Tony. There is something shining in his eyes that Tony can't quite name, but still manages to send pleasant tingles throughout his body. Steve moves back towards the workbench and takes the seat he was occupying before and pats the seat next to him in invitation.

“Come take a seat, Tony. You won't believe what we had to deal with.”

Tony glances to Dummy from the corner of his eye and he swears that if the robot had a face, it would have a knowing expression plastered all over it. Tony brushes his fingers over Dummy's own chrome fingers in a loving manner, which a total contradiction to the “community college” he hisses at the robot. Dummy just cheeps (not taking the threat seriously) and joins them at the table.

As Tony tells JARVIS what pizza to order, he pushes his luck and shuffles closer to Steve. His leg presses against the super soldier's and he holds his breath. He lets it go in relief, because not only does Steve not move away, but he actually seems to press back. If he wasn't mistaken Tony would swear that there is a blush spreading across Steve's cheekbones. It is a sight he is determined to see more of.

 

Tony and Steve get closer over the next couple of months. Steve spends most evenings in Tony's lab sketching, playing with Dummy, or simply just watching Tony tinker with his machines.

When Tony has some free time during the day, he hangs out with Steve at the near-by park eating hot dogs and tossing a Frisbee around (Tony did suggest they toss around the shield, which resulted in Steve staring at him with a horrified expression and ignored him for a whole 10 minutes).

Before dinner they play a game of chess (which Tony usually loses) and chat about everything. One night during one of these games Tony realises that Steve has become his closest friend. Closer than Rhodey... even closer than Pepper (and he thought that was impossible). He thinks it might be because the other two were forced by circumstances to stick around him long enough to find something they like, whereas Steve didn't really have to hang around, but chose to anyway.

Soon this thought will weasel it's way into his head whenever he is around Steve, and when it does his heart flutters and a ridiculous smile forms on his lips. He tries to wipe it off before Steve notices, but sometimes he catches Steve watching him from the corner of his eye and is sure he has been caught. Steve doesn't say anything though, which could either mean that Steve doesn't know what the smile means (which is the option Tony would prefer), or that Steve is just too nice to tell Tony that he isn't interested in him that way (which Tony thinks is the more likely option). Usually when Tony's thoughts reach this place and he is about to come up with excuses to give Steve the distance he thinks the man deserves, Steve will usually suggest a sparring match or a few laps around the pool (and how can Tony walk away from the opportunity of seeing Captain America with no shirt on).

One day Tony is scrolling through his phone in his lab when he spots the date...July 2nd. He jumps to his feet and runs to the staircase that will lead him to the kitchen.

“Jarvis, where is everyone? Kitchen?”

Tony is halfway up the stairs when JARVIS responds. “Negative, sir. Master Barton, Miss Romanoff, Master Thor, and Master Banner are all in the living room having a heated discussion about whom should be in possession of the television remote. Captain Rogers is currently undergoing his monthly medical review aboard the Helicarrier.”

Tony gives a little fist pump as he barges through the kitchen, and jogs towards the living room. “Excellent. Now I don't have to find a reason to get Steve out of the mansion.” The universe must not be hating on him as much today as it usually does.

Everyone jumps a foot in the air when Tony slams into the living room, except Natasha, who just raises a perfectly shaped eyebrow at him. Tony grabs the remote from Clint, ignoring his very colorful protests and then signals for them to be silent. What surprises him is that they actually do so. Not wanting to push his luck by making an insulting or inappropriate comment, Tony just jumps in with his idea.

“Steve's birthday is in 2 days and we need to celebrate.”

Silence is all that greets him for the next few seconds, that is until Thor bounces off the sofa and slaps Tony (quite painfully) on the back.

“What an excellent idea, my friend. We shall invite everyone in our acquaintancece and I shall send for the finesmeadd that can be found in Asgard,” shouts anoverenthusiasticc Thor.

Tony turns so that he is fully facing the God of thunder and puts on his most apologetic face. He knows what he is going to do next is the equivalent of kicking (a very large) puppy, but even though Thor is his favorite, Steve is the one that he needs to make happy. He pats the Norse God on the shoulder.

“Normally I would be all for a Asgard style shindig, but this is for Steve and he hates big, noisy parties. It has to be low key.”

Natasha, who had been glaring at Tony in suspicion, is now looking at him in what looks to be slight approval.

“So what exactly do you have in mind, Stark?” She asks with no inflection in her voice (which Tony thinks is an improvement on the contempt he usually hears).

Tony takes a moment because he hasn’t really thought that far ahead. All he knows that they have to do something that Steve likes. He goes through the list he has been compiling mentally since he started hanging out with Steve. Baseball: too crowded and New York no longer has the Dodgers. Art: too risky having Thor or the Hulk any where near an art museum. Motorcycles: Not really something you can share as a group (though he wouldn’t mind plastering himself against Steve's back as they race down the free-way). Food: and he has it!

Tony gives the waiting group a triumphant smile. “We are going to have a sit down dinner. I'm gonna research a few places and when I find the perfect place, I'll text you the address. No-one is to breathe a word of this to Steve, got it?”

Everyone in the room, who respect and care for their leader, nod their heads, knowing that Tony might not be trusted with most things, but that he can be trusted with this. Tony, a little humbled by this show of trust, gives them one last smile and then heads towards his office, where he will start searching for somewhere perfect for Steve's birthday.

He reaches the foot of the stairs that will lead him to the upper levels and stops. He spins to face the other Avengers, who have been watching him make his exit.

“It won't be a fancy affair, so no need to get too dressed up. But Thor, you will be expected to where pants. Also, presents are mandatory... and nothing from the adult shop. I'm talking to you, Clint.”

As he takes the steps two at a time, Tony can hear Clint's outraged voice address the others. “I can't be that fucking obvious, can I?”

Tony chuckles the rest of the way to his office, but once he is inside he gets straight down to business. He needs to make this birthday the best possible birthday ever. He needs to do this.

 

On the night of the party, Tony manages to talk Steve into wearing a blindfold and get into a car that Tony is going to drive (because he gave Happy the night off). He decides to take one of his more inconspicuous cars since the restaurant that was the perfect choice is located in a not-so-savery neighborhood. Steve only asks him where they are going once and simply smiles when Tony refuses to tell him, as though he knew he would get that answer and simply wanted to hear Tony's voice (but that might just be wishful thinking on Tony's part).

Tony pulls up to the curb and quickly notes that everyone is here. He carefully leads Steve out of the car and towards their final destination (he tries to ignore the fluttery feeling he gets from Steve's strong grip in his hand).

As they walk through the door, Tony reaches up and unties the blindfold and when it falls away everyone in the room screams “SURPRISE!” Steve lets out a little gasp as he takes in the sight of his team-mates (and friends) standing in the middle of diner that has been modelled after the ones he probably frequented in the 1930's. He spins to Tony with a look of utter amazement and Tony tries to keep the self-satisfied grin off his face. He doesn’t want to blow this.

“What is going on, Tony? I thought you were taking me to a party.” Steve asks, with wonder still shining in his eyes.

Tony gestures to the other Avenger (and Pepper) and then around the diner. “This is a party. Your birthday party. I knew you wouldn’t like one of my usual parties, so I hired out this place for the night and asked these losers along.” Tony states this with a hint of pride.

Steve looks sceptical and turns to Pepper, an unspoken (but obvious) question of Tony's actually involvement in planning plastered all over his face. The red-head shakes her head and answers, “I had nothing to do with this. This was actually all Tony.”

Steve returns his gaze to Tony, whose pleased expression has fallen from his face because of Steve's doubt, and smiles apologetically, before pulling Tony into a hug. Tony's arms automatically go around the larger man's waist. His breath hitches when he feels Steve's lips brush against his ear.

“Thank you, Tony. This is the most thoughtful gift anyone had ever given me. I will never forget this.”

His squeezes Tony a little tighter, then he lets go and makes his way over to his friends who are waiting to wish him a happy birthday. Tony just stands where Steve has left him, a dopey expression on his face and his fingers brushing the ear that Steve's lips touched.

The party is a success. Steve unwraps presents (all of them thoughtful and appropriate) and they stuff themselves with burgers and milkshakes. The diner staff bring out an ice-cream cake (Steve's favorite) with 96 candles on top of it. Steve lets out a laugh before he closes his eyes and blows out all the candles. Thor wraps an arm around the back Steve's neck and pulls him into an embrace that isn’t so much a hug as it is a really sloppy choke-hold.

“I have heard from my beautiful Jane that it is customary for one to make a wish when one extinguishes the flames of birth. I desire to know what you wished for.” Thor practically roars this in Steve's ear, who tries not to wince.

Steve twists in Thor's grip until his eyes lock with Tony's. A seconds pass between them where they just stare at each other, and Tony could swear that Steve looks hungry even after all the food they had just consumed. They are pulled out of the moment when Thor jostles Steve, obviously impatient for an answer to his question.

“It's... it's priv... I mean I can't say, because if I do then it won't come true,” say Steve, and then his voice drops to a whisper as he adds, “And I really want this one to come true.”

Steve's cheeks go red as Thor releases him and everyone stares at him curiously... everyone that is, except Pepper who glancing between Steve and Tony suspiciously. Tony doesn't notice. He is too busy trying to stop the hope that Steve's looks and words have awoken in him from taking over his brain completely. For the first time in a long time, he is not upset that he is failing at something.

 

At around midnight they call it a night. Pepper offers to drive Steve back to the mansion when Tony mentions that he needs to stop by Stark Tower for some supplies he doesn’t have at the mansion, but Steve declines, stating that he will keep Tony company. The only word that can describe how Tony feels is... giddy (and he will never admit that fact out-loud). Tony manages to maintain his calm as they make their way to his car.

As Tony pulls the car onto the road, Steve turns on the radio and it is playing, to Tony's horror, Backstreet Boys. Steve seems pleased with the music choice, which only horrifies Tony more.

“Steve, please tell me you are not a fan of Nick Carter, because if you are, we can know longer hang out.”

Steve laughs and his hand moves to Tony's thigh, which causes Tony to swerve onto the other side of the road for a moment before he corrects himself. Steve, rather than being concerned by this reaction, actually seems kind of smug, which nearly causes Tony to do it again.

“I bet you are more of a B-Rok fan. He seems more your type.” Steve says, jokingly. Tony wants to tell Steve that he is a 'Boyz to Men' fan all the way, but the hand now squeezing his thigh has caused his brain to short-circuit. He ends up just opening and closing his mouth soundlessly as he stares at the road in front of him. When he gets himself together enough to glance over at Steve, he notices the smugness is gone and seems to have been replaced with what could only be described as want..

Tony is starting to realise that his growing feelings for Steve may actually be returned, and that this may be the time to show his hand (because he knows that without encouragement, Steve tends to withdraw). But just as Tony goes to speak, a warning alarm sounds throughout the car.

“A small missile from an unknown source has locked onto this vehicle. 5 seconds before impact. Please brace yourselves.” JARVIS says, with a tinge of panic tainting his computerised voice.

Tony ducks his head towards his knees and turns to make sure Steve is doing the same. He places his hand on the one Steve still has on his thigh and holds it for dear life as the missile hits the undercarriage of the car and lifts it off the road, flipping them in the air.

Tony's eyes lock with Steve, and he can't believe that it has taken a high powered weapon hitting his car for him to recognise that he loves Steve Rogers.

“Perfect fucking timing as per usual,” Tony mutters just before the car hits the asphalt and everything goes black.

 

When Tony eventually comes to, he becomes aware of three things. One: his whole body is one entire bruise. Two: he is tied to a chair, which he is ashamed to admit (even to himself) is not an uncommon occurrence. And three: Steve is alive and tied to the chair 2 metres in front of him. The relief that floods his mind at that last one is almost painful, but in a very good way. It would feel even better if he could touch Steve just to make sure he is safe. He struggles in his chair, pulling at his bindings, but freezes when Steve yells at him.

“Don't move, Tony. You could be injured and all we need is for you to fall over, hit your head, and fall into a coma. And don't argue because you know I am right.” If he could, Steve would have crossed his arms over his chest to bring home his point. Tony actually waits a moment to see if Steve will break his bonds to do just that.

He doesn’t, so Tony then busies himself by looking around their prison. He notices that it is not the usual dungeon or cave that most supervillans prefer, and that it actually looks a little like one of his labs back at Stark Tower (though with inferior equipment).

He turns back to Steve. “I do not have a good feeling about this, Steve. This seems a lot more organised then something Dr Doom or Loki would think up.” Steve goes to reply but is cut off when the door slides open, and a man in an expensive (yet ill-fitting) suit walks in. He stands between Steve and Tony, looking at neither of them as he fiddles with his tablet.

“Gentlemen, welcome to one of the many A.I.M bases situated around the world. I hope your stay hasn’t been too unpleasant. My name is George Tarleton. I am director of operations.”

Steve tilts his head so that he can look past their captor and stare at Tony with a questioning gaze.

“A.I.M?” Steve asks Tony.

Tony gives Tarleton a quick glare before he returns his gaze to Steve and answers patiently. “Advanced Idea Mechanics. It was part of Hydra, but managed to survive even after you cut all the heads off.”

Steve looks even more confused. “Why haven't I ever heard about them?”

Tony waits for the man in front of him to answer, but when he just keeps playing with the device in his hands, Tony sighs and answers Steve's question. “Only a few of SHEILD's scientists were authorised to know, and one of them was my father. I found his notes after his death and just assumed A.I.M had fallen apart over time, since I haven't heard a peep about them until now.”

George Tarleton finally looks up from his table and turns to Tony with a conceded smirk on his face. Tony now understands why so many people threw drinks at him them he used that smile. He wishes he had one now because that expression is really pissing him off. By the look on Steve’s face, he feels the same way.

“You haven’t heard from us until now because we haven’t wanted you to. A.I.M is very adept at keeping ourselves hidden and after Hydra's demise, it was necessary.”

“Okaaay... so why has A.I.M come out of its little hidey-hole now?” Steve asks, agitation clear in his voice.

The director turns his full attention Steve and smiles. “For the same reason everyone else usually comes out of hiding. We want something. Namely, the co-ordinates of the SHIELD Helicarrier and its entry codes. You are the only one in the Avengers that has both, Captain.”

Tony shuffles in his seat when he hears this, trying to get a look at Cap's reaction. He gets a quick glance of Steve's face as it sets in determination and this causes Tony to smirk. He has been on the receiving end of that look enough times to know that this man is not getting anything from Steve... except maybe a clenched jaw and an eye roll.

“Well, you crawled out from under your rock for no reason because I am not giving you anything.” Steve says, with absolutely no inflection.

Mr Tarleton doesn't seemed phased by Steve's declaration. If anything, he seems kind of pleased as he steps away from Steve and walks over to the table by the far wall. He seems to be searching for something, and all Steve and Tony can do is wait. As the seconds tick by, the dread begins to grow within Tony. This guy has an ace up his sleeve because there is no way anyone would be this confident against Captain America without one, but for the life of him he can't figure out what that ace could be.

“I thought you would say that, Captain. That is the only reason why Tony Stark is sitting in this room, instead of lying in his overturned car with a bullet in his brain. He is my bargaining chip.” The director turns from the table to stare at Steve, whose eyes have widen in horror, and holds up a small claw-like device that Tony recognises instantly. His blood runs cold, and he begins pulling at his bonds with a fear he hasn't felt in a very long time. Steve's head snaps to him and he tries to leap out of his chair to protect Tony from whatever is frightening him so badly, but all he manages to do is knock his chair, and himself over onto the floor.

The director steps over a struggling Steve with ease and makes his way towards Tony. He stops a foot from him before reaching out towards his arc reactor with his free hand. Tony frantically tries to move away, but it's no use.

“Mr Stark, there is a rumor going around that this pretty little night light that you have buried in your chest, not only powers your Iron Man suit, but that it is also the only thing stopping a a couple of dozen small pieces of metal lodging in your heart and killing you.” Tarleton pauses for a minute to simply stare at Tony before continuing, “Though the terror I see in your eyes tells me that it is more then a mere rumor, which is exactly what I was banking on.”

Suddenly, he has his hands pulling at Tony's hair to hold him in place as he locks the device in his other hand to the ARC reactor and pulls it out. Every muscle in Tony's body seizes and his chest is in agony. It is almost like he can feel every single shard of shrapnel start make their way closer to his heart. He knows doesn’t have long.

Tarleton spins to Steve with the ARC reactor in hand and a mock look of surprise on his face. “Oh no. This can't be good. Now, I can always put it back, but it will cost you, Captain.”

Steve growls at him, his muscles flexing visibly under his clothes as he tries to break free of the ropes holding him to the chair. The man walks up to him and gives him a swift kick to the ribs, robbing Steve of breath for a moment.

“Pay attention, Captain. You are wasting time. Time that Mr Stark does not have. Just give us the codes and co-ordinates, and he'll be as good as new. Do you really want your stubbornness to be the cause of his death? Is your honor that important to ---” Tarleton is interrupted when an explosion rattles the entire building. He puts his hand to his ear, obviously trying to discern what is happening through his ear peice. He sighs and looks down at Steve with a put-upon expression. “Your friends are here, but my men are making sure that they won't find us in time to save Stark. Only you can do that.”

Steve glances over at Tony, who has gone deathly white and is covered in a sheen of sweat. Their eyes lock and Tony shakes his head, trying to make Steve understand that he isn't worth it. Steve looks away and Tony just knows that Steve is going to ignore him. He wants to struggle, maybe distract the director long enough for his heart to stop beating, effectively taking away the only leverage he has on Steve, but his body won't respond. The pain in his chest has disappeared and his arms have gone numb. He knows this isn't good. He is not scared though. That only comes when Steve calls out to Tarleton.

“Okay, I'll tell you everything, but could you perhaps put me back upright? I can't think clearly like this.” Steve says this almost pleadingly.

Director Tarleton lets out a huff of annoyance, but nods his head. He crouches down and grabs a hold of Steve's chair, lifting it until it is standing once more. He leans in towards Steve until he is well and truly in Steve's personal space.

“Now give me what I want, Captain.” Tarleton practically snarls this, obviously reaching the end of his patience.

Tony, through a haze of growing numbness, watches as Steve smiles at the man before him. He continues to watch as Steve's hands that were behind the chair come flying towards Tarleton's face, with no rope in sight. He is still watching, even as his vision begins to blur, as Steve grabs the sides of Tarleton's head to hold him in place and then headbutt him.

The director crumples to the ground, unconscious, and Steve quickly works on untying the ropes around his ankles. Once he is free, he bends down quickly to snatch the ARC reactor from Tarleton's slack grasp, and Tony watches as Steve leaps towards him.

Tony blacks out for a minute, but then comes to when he feels himself being gently laid out on the floor. He comes to the conclusion that Steve must have untied him thinking that it would be better for him to be lying down when he re-inserted the reactor.

Tony can lay there helplessly as Steve desperately tries to figure out how to put the ARC reactor in. Tony musters up the last of his strength to tell him what to do.

“Just jam it in there, Steve. This is not the time to be gentle. It will automat... automatically lock.” Tony just manages to wheeze the last part out.

His locks up as Steve, who has tears in his eyes, jams the reactor into place. He waits for the electromagnet to take affect, but soon realises something is wrong when feeling doesn't return to his extremities. The feel of Steve's hands frantically searching for his pulse and roaming his chest tells him that the blond has also discovered that Tony isn't improving. He is now looking down at Tony in terror as he trembling hands gently grasp the sides of his face.

“I put it back in, Tony. I put it back! That means you have to get better. Don't you dare leave me. Do you hear me, Shellhead? This is not the time to piss me off.” Steve’s voice is frenzied as he leans closer to Tony. All Tony wants to do is close the distance and kiss Steve with everything he has, but his body has other ideas. A sudden sharp pain vibrates through his chest and that seems to be his limit. He hears Steve scream for a medic, just before his eyes roll back into his head and then... nothing.

 

From the sounds and smells surrounding him, Tony knows that he is in a hospital. He is also aware that the hand that had been combing through his hair during his last visit to the hospital was back. He release a small moan of pleasure at the contact, only to have the hand cease a moment later and begin to move away.

“Don't stop. S'nice.” Tony manages to slur as his arm lift to reach out to the unknown person. A hand returns to his hair in an instant, and another hand takes a hold of Tony's outstretches one, guiding them to rest on the bed.

Tony finally gathers enough energy to open his eyes and the sight before him does not disappoint. Steve is sitting on the edge of the bed looking at his with such open affection that Tony's breath catches.

“Hey, Steve.” Tony chokes out. His throat is unbelievably dry, but he ignores it in favour of keeping Steve's hands in his hair and and holding his own.

Hey, Tony. Welcome back.” Steve's voice cracks a little on his name, but Tony decides not to mention it. The tears swimming in Steve's eyes tell him that now is not the time to tease. He instead settles for asking the most obvious question.

“What happened?”

Steve takes his time answering, obvious waiting until his voice will no longer betray him. Tony patiently waits, basking in the pleasant sensation the hand massaging his scalp brings. It takes a full two minutes before Steve's voice finally breaks the silence. Tony gives him his full attention.

“The doctors told me that there must have been some shrapnel was blocking one of the main arteries to your heart. They think it took a little longer for your ARC thingy to move it. When it finally did move, the sudden rush of blood was too much for your heart to handle. You went into cardiac arrest. We nearly lost you... I nearly lost you... again.” Tony can hear the despair in Steve's voice as he speaks and he squeezes the man’s hand, trying to give him some reassurance.

“I had always pictured you as a 'glass half full' kind of guy, Cap. You should be focusing on the fact that I'm not dead... and apparently still beautiful.” Steve nods, a small lift at the corner of his lips signalling the beginning of a smile. Tony is determined to see it grow.

“Another thing to focus one is the amount of green jello we get to eat while I'm here. I call jackpot, don't you?.” Steve gives him the smile Tony was fishing for and a bonus chuckle, as he nods in agreement.

“I prefer red, but I guess green will do.” Tony laughs at this, but it morphs into a yawn very quickly. Steve now has a small worried frown on his face.

“Go back to sleep, Tony. You need more rest.” Tony goes to shake his head, worried that if he goes to sleep Steve will leave. Steve's hand tightens around his as if knowing what Tony is thinking.

“I'll still be here when you wake up. Sleep now, Tony.” Tony nods as his eyes drift close. The soft caress of Steve's fingers through his hair the last thing he is aware of.

 

A week later, Tony is allowed to leave the hospital and spend the rest of his recovery in the Mansion. The doctor tells both Tony and Steve (because he doesn’t trust Tony to actually listen) that Tony needs lots of bed rest and under no circumstances is allowed to spend any time in his lab.

For the first day back, Tony follows the rules, hoping that he might get rewarded with more hair brushing or even a little more hand holding (he is not going to try for anything more until he knows he can follow through or defend himself when Steve tries to kill him).

It doesn't happen though because now that he is out of the hospital, Steve has transformed into his mother. He wakes Tony up to give his medicine, walks him to the bathroom, delivers his food, and takes away all of the Tony's fun toys when he catches Tony playing with them in bed. He has even kicked Pepper out of the room stating that Tony needs to rest.

Tony lucks out on the second day when Fury calls with an emergency (Magneto is causing some in Brooklyn and the X-men are out of town).

JARVIS tells Tony the moment Steve and the other have left and he wastes no time getting out of his room. He races to his workshop, keys in the code and takes a deep breath as he takes in his space. Dummy wheels over to him and chirps excitedly. It's metal fingers poke gently at the ARC reactor and then run across Tony's chest as if looking for injuries. Tony bats Dummy away with a laugh. “I'm fine, Dummy. Stop acting like a mother hen. I get enough of that from Steve.”

At the mention of Steve, Dummy pulls away from Tony and makes a confused whir of sounds. Tony pats it on the head and moves towards his armor that is hanging by the far wall.

“Steve is on a mission, Dummy. He will be back soon. Why don't you go draw him a picture, while Jarvis and I work on the suit?” Dummy hesitates for a second, but then nods it's head. Tony watches for a second as Dummy makes it's way over to what he has dubbed 'Steve's corner' and begins setting up the pencils Steve had bought for Dummy. He shakes his head in amusement before turning back to the Mark IV.

“Jarvis, I think I am in the mood for some AC/DC. See what you can do?” He grabs his favourite red googles and waits for JARVIS' customary response.

“Of course, sir. I will raise the volume to the ear bleeding level you enjoy.” Tony grins as he positions the goggles on his head. He loves his machines.

 

The moment Steve steps into the mansion he just knows that Tony is in his workshop. JARVIS informing him of this fact a second after it enters his brain doesn’t even slow him down as he stomps towards Tony's lab. However, he does hesitate when he reaches the glass door. There is a lack of loud noise (that he is reluctant to call music, no matter what Tony says), and Tony is no where in sight. Panic starts to bubble up inside of Steve, but then he realises that JARVIS would have told him if Tony as in trouble.

He takes a deep breath and then releases it, trying to slow down the rapid beats of his heart. Once he feels calm, Steve types in his code, calmly steps over the threshold and looks around. Steve stops short when he spots Tony sleeping on the ratty sofa that Steve believes is even older than the mansion.

He smiles as he watches Dummy place a oil stained blanket over Tony's form and then move to the end of the sofa to watch over Tony, just like a loyal dog would. It seems that Tony brings out the protective instincts out of everything in his life and not just the people.

Steve pats Dummy on the 'head' and then takes a seat on the small stool across from Tony. With elbows on his knees and chin cupped in his hand, Steve watches Tony sleep. This is the first time that he has seen Tony actually look relaxed while sleeping. Maybe because he is nearly recovered from all his injuries. Steve dismisses the thought almost immediately, because even after he recovered form the doom bot fiasco, Tony never slept this peacefully (at least no the few times Steve snuck in to Tony's room to actually make sure he was sleeping).

Steve thinks it has more to do with the fact that Tony feels safe down here with everything that he has made. He is home when he is down here.

At that moment Steve's heart skips. He finally what a monumental gift Tony gave him when he handed him his own set of access codes to this place. He was telling Steve in his own Tony way that he wanted him to be part of his life... his real life.

“You know, watching people sleep is a lot less romantic and a lot more creepy then Edward Cullen made it out to be.” Steve jumps at the sound of Tony's, slightly raspy, voice.

“Goodness, Tony. You sure gave me a fright.” Steve says, as he watches Tony rub at his eyes and then move to sit upright on the old, but comfy sofa. They stare at each other for a second before Tony smirks and pats the cushion next to him. “Come take a seat next to me, Steve. I promise I won't bite.”

“Sir, there are past sexual partners of your that would disagree with that statement.” JARVIS states, matter-a-factly.

Steve, who has just sat down on the sofa next to Tony, goes beet red as this little piece of information. He could blame the blush on embarrassment over the words spoken, but that is only 70% true. He is also embarrassed by the heat that has settled low in his abdomen at knowing that Tony is a biter in bed. He is suddenly all too aware that he wants to find out if that is true first hand.

Steve jumps, for the second time that evening, when Tony's hand lands on his thigh. Tony is looking at him with a small apologetic smile on his face.

Sorry about that, Steve. Sometimes Jarvis doesn't know when to keep his big, electronic mouth shut.” He re-enforces this apology by giving Steve's thigh a light squeeze and then goes to move his hand away. Steve doesn't want him to, so he covers Tony's grease stained hand with his own.

Tony's eyes widen in surprise at this, but he doesn't move away, which is very encouraging. Even more encouraging is the fact that Tony now seems to be leaning in towards him. Steve lets himself feel a little proud about this before he moves in and kisses Tony.

It is a chaste kiss. Lips brushing against each other. As they begin to pull apart, Steve takes Tony's bottom lip between his teeth and gives it a little bite. He gets a moan in return that sends shivers down his spine and has him promising himself to do to that as often as possible.

Tony is looking at him in awe and disbelief. “Not that I am complaining, but what did I do exactly to deserve that?”

Steve laughs and reaches over to caress Tony's cheek with the back of his hand. “Nothing really worthy of noting down.” Steve's expression turns serious as his hand flips and cups Tony's jaw. “It's just... I loved Peggy and never really acted on it until it was too late. I don't want to make the same mistake with you. I have nearly lost you twice now, and I am sure as hell not going to wait to see if you beat death a third time before I tell you what I need to tell you. I love you, Tony. I think I have loved you since you flipped me off on the Helicarrier, and... and I want us to be together.”

For a beat, Steve thinks he may have said too much, but then Tony lunges at him. This kiss is nothing like their first. Lips, teeth and tongues are duelling for dominance. Tony's hands are at the back of Steve's neck, holding him in place, while Steve hands bury themselves in Tony's hair.

When they finally separate for air, Tony, who is breathing quite heavily, rests his forehead against Steve's and smiles. “It is good to know that I'm not the only person on board this love train. I think it is going to be so much more enjoyable with us being travel buddies.”

It is Steve's turn to look surprised. “Did you say love, Tony?”

Tony opens his mouth to reply, but JARVIS beats him to it. “He did indeed, Captain Rogers. By my calculations he has been in love with you since he saw you place the picture Dummy drew of him in your pocket.”

Tony jumps up and points at JARVIS' control unit on the far wall. “Ha! You're slipping old man. It was before that. When he was taking care of me while I was on bed rest the first time.” Tony is about to add more, but two strong arms wrap around his waist, affectively shutting him up.

“How about we go up and get ourselves a bit to eat.” Steve brushes his lips against Tony's ear and is rewarded with a full body shudder.

“And then we have sex?” Steve can hear the eagerness in his voice. It kills him that he has to say no to him when he is so full of hope, but his first priority is that Tony makes a full recovery.

“Sorry, Tony, but you aren't up for that yet.” Steve can feel Tony's solders begin to droop in disappointment and quickly hurries on. “But we could make out for a while before going to sleep.”

Tony perks up at this and turns around in Steve's arms, so that they are now facing each other. He leans up and places a small kiss at the corner of Steve's lips.

“You're lucky I love you, Cap. I'm not usually know for my waiting skills. My sexing up people skills on the other hand are---” Steve cuts Tony off the best way he knows how... with another kiss.

When Steve work up he was not expecting to find himself 70 years in the future, and he definitely wasn’t expecting to find himself in love with his old friend's son. His life might not have turned out the way he had originally planned, but he wouldn’t change it for the world.

He is home, and even more importantly so is Tony.

**Author's Note:**

> George Tarleton becomes M.O.D.O.K in the comics and is part of A.I.M, but I ignored his canon to make him fit the movieverse and my story.
> 
> Thanks to soixantesix for being my beta (and forgiving me for my idiocy?) All mistakes are mine.
> 
> (Yes, I did get the title from 'The king and I'. Don't judge me).


End file.
